Exhibition

Arboriculture And Viniculture

Arboriculture occupies only a small part of the farmer’s time, as in Crete there is no systematic cultivation of trees for timber, paper etc. The main species is the olive, cultivated for its fruit and oil (used for lighting and cooking). This is followed, to a far smaller degree, by citrus trees such as orange, mandarin, and lemon; apricot, peach, loquat, almond, walnut, and fig; and wild species such as carob (for animal feed).
Viniculture is the most widespread bushy cultivation in Crete because wine has been in great demand on the island since prehistoric times. Nearly all rural families have a vineyard to cover their annual wine needs.

There are about ten varieties of grapevine in Crete, such as liatiko, mandilari, kotsifali etc., each with its own distinctive characteristics and aroma.

The grape-harvest takes place in September and the grapes are trodden in small household winepresses. Until recently, the must was transferred to special wine barrels and fermented for a few weeks until the wine was ready for drinking. These barrels were rare in the countryside, due to their cost and the lack of coopers. The prehistoric Minoans made clay pots, similar in shape to those used by their descendants until recently.

The Implements used in Arboriculture and Viniculture

• The implements used in arboriculture and viniculture are few and very simple.
• The manari or axe for large trees.
• The manaraki, a small, thin axe for thick branches.
• The sarakas or curved saw.
• The tsaprazi, a pruning-knife with a curved blade and fine teeth.
• The tzitreto, a short, thick-bladed grafting knife.
• Various sizes of hoe and spade, particularly for use in vineyards.
• The gantzos, a curved billhook on a long pole for pruning high branches.

The olive mill was a specialized building in the villages where the olives were processed to extract their oil.This pre-industrial building contained two main mechanisms, used in Crete from the depths of antiquity to the early 20th century:
The mill, with large vertical millstones drawn by beasts of burden, to crush the olives.
The olive mash press to extract the oil.

The distillation of spirits from the remains of trodden grapes is a relatively recent practice in Crete, which first appeared in the mid-19th century.
The stills or kazania are privately owned and pay a small daily tax while in operation (October to November). They are composed of a large copper boiler, the kazani, which is set in the wall above a hearth. Its copper lid resembles a swollen elephant’s head, with the trunk formed by a long copper pipe, the loulas. This passes through a special pot, the throumba, which is full of fresh water.

The distillation process for tsikoudia or raki is as follows:
The still operator or kazaniaris lights a wood fire under the still, which is full of trodden and fermented grape skins and pips, or tsikouda. As the temperature of the mixture rises, the alcohol evaporates and rises through the lid to the loulas which passes through the water pot. The vapours are cooled as they pass through and the distilled liquid runs into a special container, the raki kouroupi (earthenware pot).